Review: Alienation

Alienation is the new twin-stick shooter from Housemarque, the development studio behind some of PlayStation’s best games in Dead Nation, Resogun and Super Stardust. This is Housemarque’s first foray into the genre of online loot driven games and they have very much succeeded, even if some issues bog down certain aspects of the experience.

The plot of Alienation is simple, aliens have invaded earth and a team of exosuit-wearing specialists have to battle for the future of the planet. Three character classes make up the team with the Tank, Bio-Specialist and Saboteur representing the typical loot game fare. The classes share the same list of three passive abilities whilst each touts its own unique list of three active abilities. The Tank can wield a sword and call in an airstrike for offensive maneuvers while the Bio-Specialist can leave a trail of poison and heal party members within a certain radius. In solo play, these classes don’t leave much of an impression but when a team comes together and mixes these abilities to ward off an onrushing horde of Xenos, it’s a joy to witness. Having played as each, I thoroughly recommend the Bio-Specialist. It seems that most players want the assault or stealth classes and the Bio-Specialist is sorely neglected, even if his healing abilities can be the difference between success and failure.

The story missions themselves leave a lot to be desired however. It’s at this point that many reviews and players have compared the game to the likes of Helldivers and Diablo but I think Destiny has to be the most apt comparison. Alienation contains 20 story missions that take place across a number of different maps. You might have two missions on one map and then return to it in a later mission. The map themselves are well designed and are fully explorable from the beginning. It’s nice to explore these beautiful lands to discover new loot and daily challenges but the main objectives pushing you forward are incredibly drab. The writing and voice actors that accompany you through the campaign aren’t even entertaining in their efforts, they’re just downright boring. The objectives themselves require you to push a couple of buttons in a location or to clear out a hive of Xenos. When these missions are compared to the optional challenges of defeating certain hard enemies and acquiring a great piece of loot for your efforts, it seems that no thought was put into the story line.

Another slightly disappointing aspect is the weaponry in Alienation. Even though Destiny had the same drab story and mission design, it kept me hooked looking for the next great weapon, hopefully one I’ve never seen before. Alienation slows that process to a crawl. Weapons do drop quite often and even legendary drops are quite regular near the end of the campaign but they are all the same. Every shotgun and remote grenade is the same as the one before it, just with more damage and maybe an extra slot for an upgrade. In all my time in Alienation, I’ve only gotten one exotic weapon and it looked like the mini-gun that I had equipped previously. Hopefully I will get better guns as I level up some more. It’s a problem, albeit a small one. I still get the sense of exhilaration when I feel how much more powerful the gun is, even if there’s no cosmetic difference.

The gameplay loop has been a staple of Housemarque’s games in the past and Alienation is no different. The characters all move sharply and so do the enemies, who are no slouches. As in all loot games, there are tonnes of disposable creatures that just run towards the barrel of your gun but this tactic takes on a whole new dynamic when you have to dodge the timed sniper shot of a distant enemy, all while attempting to flank a shield wielding enemy who explodes if you kill them too closely. When the game ratchets up the difficulty, Alienation shines at its brightest, a difficult game that requires intelligence, teamwork and skill to work your way through.

Alienation isn’t perfect. The story is pretty bad and there’s not enough variety in regards to the weapons and objectives. The game signifies why Housemarque are one of the best developers however. The gameplay is flawless. Alienation requires a level of interaction that keeps you at your best, physically and mentally. When the chaos reaches a certain point, there’s no game this year that is more fun and exhilarating than Alienation.

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RAID 2018 is a gaming event, by gamers, for gamers. Offering BYOC LAN tournaments, video game concerts, talks from industry professionals and much more, we're banking on this being the best

Event Details

RAID 2018 is a gaming event, by gamers, for gamers. Offering BYOC LAN tournaments, video game concerts, talks from industry professionals and much more, we’re banking on this being the best gaming event in Ireland during 2018!